Sport racquets or paddles, such as platform tennis racquets, paddle tennis racquets, padel tennis racquets, tennis racquets, table tennis paddles, badminton racquets, racquetball racquets and squash racquets, are well known and enjoyed by users in many recreational activities. Platform tennis is an American racquet sport invented in 1928 in New York, and enjoyed by thousands of people of all ages. It is the only racquet sport that is frequently enjoyed outdoors in cold weather. This unique appeal attracts people who desire fresh air, competition, and social engagement. The game is typically played on an elevated aluminum deck on a court that is smaller than a tennis court. The deck or base of the court is usually enclosed allowing for a heating system to be positioned beneath the deck. The court is surrounded by a 12 foot high, taut wire fencing which allows play off the walls, as in racquetball and squash.
Paddle tennis, which also originated in New York, has existed for over a hundred years. Paddle tennis is a game derived from tennis and played on court that is smaller than a conventional tennis court. Paddle tennis courts are constructed in a manner similar to tennis courts, and can also exist on hard beach sand. Unlike platform tennis, paddle tennis does not require fencing positioned about the court. Paddle tennis is played with a depressurized tennis ball and an underhand serve. The smaller court size adds a strong emphasis and advantage to net play and creates a fast and reaction-based game.
Padel tennis (or just pádel) is a racquet sport similar to paddle tennis. It was invented in Acapulco, Mexico in 1969 and played extensively in Spain and Latin America. The court is about half the size of a tennis court and includes walls, which like platform tennis are in play.
Sports racquets for platform tennis, paddle tennis and padel tennis are constructed with a rigid rounded planar head portion connected to a handle portion. The head portion is unstrung and typically includes aerodynamic holes extending therethrough. Other sports racquets, such as tennis racquets, badminton racquets, racquetball racquets and squash racquets generally include a head portion that forms closed curved structure supporting a matrix of string segments (also referred to as a string bed). A handle portion is typically coupled to the head portion.
Many racquet sports are engaged in as part of a social gathering. Such social gatherings provide participants the opportunity to play the racquet sport and to enjoy the company of the other participants. During such social sports activities, it is common for the participants to take breaks, or to rotate in and out of play, to partake in and to enjoy beverages and other refreshments with other participants. During the colder months, platform tennis players will frequent warming huts or break areas to allow players to warm themselves and also to enjoy beverages and other refreshments.
During such events, it is common for players to enjoy bottled beverages. Many bottled beverages are secured with metal bottle caps that are pleated or ruffled around the upper rim of the bottle. Such bottles typically require a bottle opener or other tool to remove the cap from the bottle. Bottle opening tools are small devices that are easily misplaced, lost or forgotten. Accordingly, on many occasions, players engaging in social racquet sporting events can find themselves without a tool for removing caps from the bottles of beverages. Accordingly, a need exists for a convenient way to ensure that players at social racquet sporting events do not find themselves without a device or tool for removing the caps from beverage bottles. It would be advantageous to provide a mechanism for ensuring that a social sporting event can be held with refreshments without having to remember to bring, carry or obtain a tool for removing a cap from a beverage bottle.